BP ready for trial in Deepwater Horizon case

LONDON (AP) — BP says it has failed to reach a settlement in advance of next week’s civil trial on the Deepwater Horizon accident and is ready to defend itself vigorously against allegations of gross negligence in the U.S.’s biggest environmental disaster.

Rupert Bondy, the group’s general counsel, said in a statement Tuesday that settlement demands were “not based on reality or the merits of the case.”

Billions are at stake in the Feb. 25 trial in New Orleans to determine BP’s civil liability. BP already agreed to a $4.5 billion settlement of federal criminal charges.

The trial is designed to identify the causes of BP’s well blowout in the disaster that killed 11 workers.